Tabal gets ‘rockstar treatment’
Mary Joy Tabal visited Barangay Guba the other day to check on the progress of the members of her grassroots team.
To her surprise, she was welcomed like a superstar not just by the pupils of Guba Elementary School but the entire barangay came out to meet her.
“Nalipay ko kay grabi kaayo ilang pag welcome sa akoa. Mura ko nabungog. Gi-atangan jud ko nila and galaray jud sila sa tibuok kalsada na mura jud ug ga parade sa tibuok Guba,” said Tabal.
Tabal and her team Motor Ace-Kawasaki Racing prepared snacks for her grassroots running team but came up short because of the overwhelming welcome by the barangay. Tabal talked to everyone, especially the children. “I just encouraged them to do the best that they can. Through sports, I was able to finish school and I reached my dreams despite the difficulties I faced,” Tabal said in Cebuano.
Tabal added that it made her happy seeing her grassroots kids again. “It makes me feel good to know that they became even more inspired after my SEA Games win. They are now more diligient in training.”
Tabal also visited the kids in her grassroots program in Liloan.
Today, the grassroots kids from Guba, Liloan, Sisters of Mary Girls and Boystown will be joining the Don Sergio Osmena Sr. Run, the race that catapulted Tabal to where she is now.
But the run is not merely a run for running’s sake.
Tabal and coach John Philip Dueñas have set a goal for each runner. They set a qualifying mark for them and whoever makes it will be awarded with a trip to Bohol to join the Milo Marathon Regional eliminations.
“We gave them a challenge to encourage them. We want to bring them to Bohol so they could experience a huge running event before they could join the Milo National Finals in Cebu in December,” said Tabal.
Meanwhile, Hon. Orlan Herrera, Barangay Captain of Brgy Guba, Cebu said that the people from Guba expressed how proud they are of Tabal and came out to greet, welcome and congratulate her.
He added that there is now added pressure for Guba to produce another world-caliber athlete just like Tabal. /